For around 147 years cowboys have understood the quality of a Stetson cowboy hat. You can find all sorts of companies that make cowboy hats but in my opinion you won’t find a better made cowboy hat than a Stetson.

Legend has it that the very first Stetson western hat was purchased by a cowboy for $5.00. He took it right off of John B. Stetson’s head, tried it on and bought it on the spot. That was the beginning of a long standing connection with the cowboy and a hat making company. I’ll tell you more of the story further down in this article.

But first let’s look at the different styles available in Stetson cowboy hats. As an old advertising slogan says, “You’ll look your best in a Stetson.”

Straw Cowboy Hats

Straw cowboy hats are for the summer and not really meant to be worn in the colder months. It is sort of like wearing white after Labor Day, ya can do it but it just ain’t cool. Straw hats really shouldn’t get wet so don’t go wearin’ ’em in the rain.

A Little History Of The Stetson Hat Company

John B Stetson was the son of a hat maker. In 1865 he traveled from New Jersey out west due to some health issues. While on a hunting trip, he made a hat more as a joke than anything. He wanted to prove to his companions that a hat could be made from fur without going through the tanning process. As it turns out, Stetson rather liked his creation and wore it on the rest of the trip. He liked the way it protected him from the elements.

The hat was very large as hats go. It had a wide brim and a high crown. The higher crown created a pocket of air that further cooled and protected the head. It was also great for carrying water in.

That cowboy I mentioned in the first paragraph saw it on Stetson’s head and liked it so much he bought it right then and there. The cowboy rode off wearing what would become the very first cowboy hat made by John B. Stetson.

The hat, after Stetson returned to Philadelphia and started his own hat business, became known as the “Boss of the Plains”. Picture is shown here. You can read the entire story in this book: Boss of the Plains

Early Wearers Of Stetson Western Hats

Buffalo Bill

Calamity Jane

Will Rogers

Annie Oakley

Some say George Armstrong Custer wore a Stetson into the Battle of the Little Bighorn.

Black Stetson Hats

I’d say these black cowboy hats by Stetson are good for Sunday Goin’ Ta Meetin’ or Saturday Night dancin’. Ya know when a guy needs to be dressed up just a little. Black wouldn’t work out on the ranch…too much dust. But a guy needs a good dress hat, don’t ya know. See a sample of the Apache By Stetson

Ten Gallon Cowboy Hat

Ten gallons is not the capacity of liquid that can be held in a 10 gallon Cowboy hat. The Spanish word for braid is galon (looks like gallon) and the 10 referred to the number of braids used in the hat band.

John Stetson Understood Marketing

Not only did John Stetson understand how to make a quality hat, he understood marketing too. He is reported to have sent a sample of his “Boss of the Plains” hat to merchants in the Southwest region of the US with a letter requesting that an order of no less than 12 hats be placed. The hats caught on quickly.

By 1886 Stetson was the largest hat company in the world. By 1906 it was producing around 2 million hats per year.

Even the movie cowboys adopted the Stetson cowboy hats to wear in their movies.

If you are looking for a nice pair of western boots, I can highly recommend the Lucchese boots for women! I spent some serious time shopping for a pair of cowboy boots for myself. I lost count of how many pairs of boots that I tried on before I found the pair that I purchased. And I have to tell you that I had just about given up. That is until I tried on a pair of Lucchese boots and the search was over. I said to the sales lady, “Ma’am, I believe this pair is going home with me today.”

Now, I did not plan on spending this much money on a pair of boots but once I put them on and they fit my foot like a glove, there was no turning back.

Lucchese is pronounced: lou kay zee

This is the pair of boots that I purchased for myself. I love the burnished tan color and the goat leather is so very comfortable! One thing that appealed to me was that even though the boots are brand new, they have a look of having been worn awhile. Sort of a distressed look. I also prefer the 12 inch boots so that I can wear them with jeans out or in and they look pretty cool with a skirt or dress, too. Lucchese N4540 Ladies’ Boots

Sam Lucchese was 17 years old in 1880 when he immigrated to the U.S. from Italy. His dream was to be a fine bootmaker. He began to make a name for himself by making boots for the U.S. Cavalry. At age 20 in 1883, he opened his Lucchese Boot Company in San Antionio, Texas. The company is now located in El Paso but the care in making a pair of boots is no different.

Sam Lucchese, Jr, the grandson of the founder, studied the human foot and came up with a design of boot that fits the foot like no other. I can attest to that!

In today’s making of a pair of boots at the Lucchese Boot Company, some processes are done by machine but at least are checked and re-checked by human hands. Many steps are still done by hand.

It takes a little more time to make a pair of Lucchese boots whether they are for women, men, or children. The true fit is accomplished by the design but that isn’t all. The finest leathers are selected to make the boots and the lemon wood pegs are driven by hand in every pair of boots. The finishing process is meticulous.

A few things that happen:

1. there are 100 steps to making a pair of Lucchese boots
2. 250 hands touch the boots each day
3. the process takes 15 days from start to finish
4. about 14,000 boots are in some form of production on any given day.

My boots have held up well and get more comfortable every time that I wear them.

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